The invention relates to a frame for a vehicle sliding sunroof.
The term xe2x80x9cvehicle sliding sunroofxe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9csliding sunroofxe2x80x9d is here taken to mean all types that can be covered by this collective term, for which the attachment of a wind deflector in the area of the front edge of a vehicle roof opening, to which a moveable cover is assigned, is usual and/or appropriate, in particular for sliding sunroofs with only a slidable cover, for slide-and-tilt sunroofs with a cover that can also be deployed and for top-ridge sliding sunroofs (spoiler roofs) having a cover that can be partially displaced above the rear, fixed roof surface.
Wind deflectors generally have deployment arms directed rearwards, which at their rear ends are hinged on the frame, so that in opening movements of the cover the wind deflector, under spring force, is deployed from its rest position into its deployed position projecting upwards from the roof surface above the front edge of the roof opening. During closing movements of the cover, the latter runs directly or indirectly into the deployment arms and moves the wind deflector into its retracted rest position.
Although a wind deflector is also mentioned in the case of a known frame for a vehicle sliding sunroof (DE 197 46 545 A1), its design and method of support are neither described nor represented in the drawings. Wind deflectors, however, are commonly supported at bearing points that also have to be positioned on and attached to the frame. For this reason, the attachment location of the bearing points is subject to fluctuations occurring in manufacturing and assembly (production tolerances), so that malfunctions can occur in the operation of the sliding sunroof/wind deflector.
The object of the invention is to provide a frame of the generic type, which will permit easy, rapid and hence cost-effective attachment of a wind deflector to the frame with nevertheless accurate positioning.
According to the present invention, there is provided a frame for a vehicle sliding roof, the frame comprising a frame front member molded from plastic having two integrally molded-on side arms, to which frame side members running rearwards are connected, the members having water channels open at the top, of which one of said water channels is provided in the frame front member and accommodates a wind deflector in its undeployed rest position, wherein the wind deflector has wind deflector deployment arms, and wherein swivel bearings are provided, the swivel bearings being integrally formed on to the frame front member and are designed to receive swivel bearing pivot pins fitted to the wind deflector deployment arms.
According to the basic idea of the invention, the swivel bearing points for the wind deflector deployment arms are already incorporated into the front member and its side arms during the injection molding of the frame front member, the bearing points being formed not as parts that have to be additionally inserted into the injection mold, but formed from the plastic of the front member itself. When it comes to locating them on the frame front member, the bearing points are therefore not subject to any significant variations in manufacturing accuracy, but only to the very small injection molding die tolerances.
The swivel bearings may in each case be arranged in pairs in both side arms of the frame front member. At the same time all four swivel bearings may be situated on a common axis of alignment running at right angles to the vertical center plane of the frame. The two deployment arms of the wind deflector are therefore each supported at two bearing points, precise bearing symmetry being provided for both deployment arms.
The frame-side swivel bearings are advantageously designed as single receiving slots that are open at the top and suitably rectilinear, into which swivel bearing pivot pins, fitted from above to the ends of the wind deflector deployment arms, are introduced, which then find their bearing points at the lower ends of the receiving slots.
In order to avoid also having to secure the swivel bearing pivot pins in their bearing points against accidental escape from the receiving slots, that is having to hold them down, it is proposed, that the lower ends of the receiving slots should widen out into cylindrical bearing apertures, and that the swivel bearing pivot pins on the deployment arms, should not only have a diameter matched to the bearing apertures, but also flattened portions, which permit their introduction through the narrower receiving slots. When the swivel bearing pivot pins are then twisted into the cylindrical bearing apertures by swiveling the deployment arms, the swivel bearing points lock, so to speak, automatically.
If the aforementioned flattened portions are arranged approximately horizontally when the wind deflector is in the rest position, the wind deflector, with deployment arms directed approximately vertically downwards, can easily be introduced by the swivel bearing pivot pins into the receiving slots and brought into the bearing position. Even slight swiveling of the wind deflector towards its rest position then gives rise to locking of all four swivel bearings as described above.
If the distance between the end faces of the swivel bearing pivot pins is only slightly less that the distance between the associated slot base surfaces of the receiving slots, the wind deflector has only an advantageously small lateral play at its swivel bearing points.
In order not to have to provide thicker walls for the frame front member in the area of the wind deflector swivel bearings, into which walls the swivel bearings are to be molded, it is advantageous if the swivel bearings are molded into wall projections of the frame front member. In this case the thickened wall sections occur only in the area of the swivel bearings.
The wind deflector with its deployment arms and the swivel bearing pivot pins can also be integrally formed from plastic. The injection molding of the wind deflector in one piece also permits cost effective manufacturing to small production tolerances.